Tour de France 2026 - Expert tips for Fantasy Games!

This is your golden guide to building your team for the 2026 Tour de France. A long read full of essential tips for your fantasy cycling pool(s). Tom Nederend and Thomas Zwetsloot, known from the CyclingOracle Podcast, give a expert tip for every team to help you with your Tour de France Fantasy Game.

Do you play the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game, Velogames, Scorito or Sporza Wielermanager? Or are you looking for a replacement for the discontinued AD Wielerspel? Below you will read, team by team, where the points are to be found, plus who the favourites are for yellow and the other jerseys. Want more tips? Take out your Petje Af membership for 27.50 or 55 euros a year and join the WielerOrakel WhatsApp Community full of Expert Tips and cycling talk, all to make looking forward to the racing even more fun.

Play the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game

The Cycling Oracle Fantasy Game has been live since this year: build your own team, earn points each stage and compete with the entire WielerOrakel community during the 2026 Tour de France. Free to play. Play the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game or first read how the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game works.

In short: how to build a strong Tour de France pool in 2026?

The 2026 Tour de France runs from 4 to 26 July, with a Grand Depart in Barcelona (a team time trial) and a brutal finale in the Alps featuring a double ascent of Alpe d'Huez. The top favourites for yellow are Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates - XRG), Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) and Paul Seixas (Decathlon). Below you will find the favourites per jersey and a golden tip for every team.

Where do you play your 2026 Tour pool?

You can play a cycling pool for the Tour de France in several places. We naturally recommend our own CyclingOracle Fantasy Game, where you compete with the whole community. Scorito and Sporza Wielermanager are popular platforms too. Just want a free pool with your colleagues or friends? Then create your own free Tour pool with us here. The tips in this blog work on every platform: it always comes down to the same question, namely which riders will score the most points for the money you spend.

Tour de France 2026 favourites: who wins yellow, green, polka dots and white?

For anyone building a pool around the classifications, these are the jerseys to keep an eye on.

Favourite for the overall win (yellow jersey)

The top favourites are Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Paul Seixas.

Tom: “Well, there can only be one. The only thing that can keep Tadej Pogacar from a fifth Tour win is bad luck or illness.”

Thomas: “No reason for any doubt: Pogacar was already the best and only seems to have got better. In a league of his own and the top favourite.”

Favourite for the green jersey (points)

Tom: “That is a tricky one this year. There are some changes to the points system, in which a number of flat sprint stages are now worth 70 instead of 50 points for the green jersey. That favours the more pure sprinters over the sprint-plus riders. Merlier climbs too poorly, Kooij will not make it his goal, and so it will mainly come down to Philipsen, Pedersen and Girmay. Given the new rules, I give Philipsen the best chance.”

Thomas: “Besides the 70 points for the stage win on the flatter days, more points are also handed out at the intermediate sprints. The winner now gets 25 instead of 20, which means there is more to grab along the way too. For me this means (1) that the green jersey therefore cannot go to a GC rider and (2) that it will go to someone who really wants to ride for it. On that second criterion I end up with Philipsen, Pedersen and Girmay. Pedersen has not convinced me in the sprints lately and I rate Girmay a notch lower in the pure sprints: for me Philipsen is the favourite for green.”

Favourite for the polka dot jersey (mountains)

Tom: “Take your pick! The safest is to name glutton Pogacar here. If we look at an old-fashioned attacker, riders like Carapaz, Lenny Martinez, Storer and Valentin Paret-Peintre come to mind. I am going for the glutton.”

Thomas: “No double points on summit finishes would favour the riders who want to chase the mountains jersey from long breakaways. Still, given UAE's usual racing behaviour, I expect the polka dot jersey to go to a GC rider this year. For me Pogacar is the top favourite for this jersey, and I think he could pull it on for the first time after stage 6. If the breakaway riders get a little more freedom, then I see Lenny Martinez, Richard Carapaz, Einer Rubio and Michael Storer as riders with the legs to reel in this jersey.”

Favourite for the white jersey (young rider)

Tom: “Some years this is settled in advance and some years you trip over the talent. This is a year of plenty. With Paul Seixas of course, but also Del Toro, Ayuso, Vauquelin, Lenny Martinez, Piganzoli and, to a lesser extent, Tiberi and Uijtdebroeks. I will take a small gamble: Del Toro for white. As the last man for Pogacar he will hardly be needed, because the world champion does not need it. Then it is a case of hanging on defensively with the chasers, and that way he can go for a good GC himself.”

Thomas: “For me there are three top favourites for this jersey: Seixas, Del Toro and Ayuso. With Del Toro I do see an increased risk that he will have to mortgage his own chances at some point, and Ayuso as a Grand Tour leader is a bit temperamental. Although I realise he has never contested a Grand Tour before, Paul Seixas is my favourite for the white jersey. I have already seen so many ‘inhuman’ performances from him this year and his recent training rides again promise plenty of good things. Allez Paul!”

Which riders should you pick for your 2026 Tour pool?

Below we cover all 23 teams of the 2026 Tour de France: the 18 permanent WorldTour teams plus five wildcards (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA, Cofidis, Pinarello - Q36.5, Team TotalEnergies and Tudor Pro Cycling Team). For each team Tom and Thomas give their golden tip. Above all make your own choices, but use this as a compass for your WielerOrakel Wielerspel, Scorito or Sporza team.

Alpecin - Premier Tech

Mathieu van der Poel plus sprint cannon Jasper Philipsen. Two leaders, plenty of stage chances.

Tom: “Emiel Verstrynge. At virtually every cycling game, including the WielerOrakel Wielerspel, he falls into the cheapest category. The sprints are for Philipsen, the punchy stages for Van der Poel, and when it gets harder Verstrynge gets carte blanche. The 24-year-old climber still rode a lot of U23 races in 2024, had to get used to the WorldTour level in 2025, but looks set to make the step in 2026. He stood out above all with an excellent 5th place in the Gold Race and 4th in Liege. Watch him!”

Thomas: “He is expensive, but he is usually worth that price tag: Jasper Philipsen. I would not skimp on Philipsen, who (barring bad luck) basically always delivers in the Grand Tours. He will have his eyes on the green jersey and gets at least six flat sprints where, with a lead-out from Van der Poel, he should be aiming high. The combination of his green ambition and his flat sprints is decisive: pick him.”

Bahrain - Victorious

GC with Antonio Tiberi and Lenny Martinez as joint leaders, Matej Mohoric for the stages.

Tom: “Lenny Martinez for me. Open up his results profile this year and you see almost nothing but top 10 placings. He was 5th in Paris-Nice, 2nd in Catalonia, 3rd in Romandie and then, somewhat disappointingly, 29th in Switzerland. Those results broadly mirror his 2025 performances. In the Tour he then underperformed a little, but he did choose to attack and finished 3rd in the mountains classification. I do not expect a GC result from the little climber, but a fine battle with Carapaz for the polka dot jersey.”

Thomas: “After a good start, Tiberi is falling away enormously in 2026, I cannot think of a reason to include him. Besides Martinez, the only option for me is Phil Bauhaus (if priced well). A nice, no-nonsense sprinter who should be able to finish steadily between 5th and 10th (hopefully with the odd better result). He sits in a slightly wider group of second-tier sprinters, but he always mixes it up reasonably well in the Grand Tours. A lot will depend on the pricing, but he always brings in points.”

Caja Rural - Seguros RGA

Debuting Spanish wildcard, aiming for a stage win, with Fernando Gaviria among others.

Tom: “Caja Rural, the team keeping the Rockets out of this Tour. Still a bit painful. The merely (?!) 31-year-old Fernando Gaviria has to do it in the sprints. Not the top sprinter of old, but a fine filler if priced reasonably.”

Thomas: “Best to leave the Caja Rural men well alone. Of course they have nice riders who can make the breakaway, but there are simply better options for that (in the lowest price bracket). If for some reason you do want a breakaway rider from this Spanish team, then Joel Nicolau and Jose Felix Parra have shown some form recently.”

Cofidis

Wildcard with broad ambitions, leaders such as Ion Izagirre, Alex Aranburu and sprinter Milan Fretin, mostly aiming from the breakaway.

Tom: “Alex Aranburu. The 30-year-old Spaniard is riding a fine season with lots of top 10 placings. Aranburu is so fast that he can even contest bunch sprints, but that domain is undoubtedly for Fretin. With Aranburu you mainly get a nice, cheap attacker and an outsider for the punchy stages.”

Thomas: “The French team is not bringing Coquard this year, but it is bringing a sprint train. The finisher in that train is Milan Fretin, the Belgian who announced himself last year as a new sprinter on the rise with a few nice wins. This year it all fell a bit short in the spring and it would not quite click in the Tour of Belgium either. He will probably be priced a touch higher than the other second-tier sprinters and so will not be chosen all that much. Still, he definitely has it in him, gets plenty of support from his own team and also sees a fair few stages that should suit him well: is he your differential?”

Decathlon CMA CGM Team

The 19-year-old Paul Seixas makes his Tour debut with podium ambitions, Olav Kooij for the sprints.

Tom: “At the time of writing it is still not clear whether Olav Kooij will go to the Tour for Decathlon, but I assume he will. He battled illness all spring, but seems fully recovered and ready to measure himself against the fastest in the world. He already hit the mark three times after his illness and is priced a touch more reasonably than Philipsen, Merlier and Pedersen, while he really is not their inferior.”

Thomas: “As explained above, I see Paul Seixas living up to plenty of expectations. His crash in TARA has eased the pressure a little and that will do him good. The second stage in Barcelona will be challenging for him, I think he will already want to drop a big bomb on the Tourmalet. I see him as one of the candidates for third place and rate him (still) below Pogacar and Vingegaard in a Grand Tour, but together with his points for the young rider classification he really is too good to leave out.”

EF Education - EasyPost

Stage and attacking team with Ben Healy and Alex Baudin, Richard Carapaz for stages or GC.

Tom: “Richard Carapaz. He aimed for a good GC in the Giro this year, but had to pull out due to surgery on his backside. And so the Colombian born attacker turned to the Tour. He is smart enough to know that a good GC in this field is tough, so he is targeting stages and the polka dots. Carapaz in his natural habitat then: on the attack! A real pool rider, because he never disappoints.”

Thomas: “Besides Carapaz, I think Alex Baudin can also show nice things from the breakaway. He rode a strong Walloon triptych and really impressed me with his win in stage 1 of TARA. He will undoubtedly have a free role and is a lovely filler for your breakaway squad. Just as with Mihkels in the Giro, for the Tour I am also specifically looking out for the (still to be added) fast man at EF's friends in pink. He will probably not be priced too high, and then there might just be a nice filler for the sprint squad in there. Let us see if there is a ‘Marijn steal’ to be had.”

Groupama - FDJ United

Home team aiming for stage wins with Romain Gregoire, David Gaudu and Guillaume Martin among others.

Tom: “That has to be Romain Gregoire. Punchy through and through. The 23-year-old Frenchman rode a full classics spring and did so very neatly. You could see he struggled with the Flemish cobbles though and ultimately delivered mainly on the hillier terrain. Worth considering if priced reasonably.”

Thomas: “At Groupama I am still waiting to see whether Paul Penhoet is taken along. That could again be a good filler in the sprint squad, but only if he is priced not much above the cheapest class. Otherwise no investments from me in other riders from this remarkably grey team, and certainly not in David Gaudu.”

Lidl-Trek

Versatile team with Juan Ayuso for GC and stage chances for sprinter Mads Pedersen, Mattias Skjelmose, Mathias Vacek and Quinn Simmons.

Tom: “Well, who do you choose off this shelf? What a choice. But what a disappointment they are as a team this season too. Then I will go for Mathias Vacek after all. The 24-year-old Czech hurt me a lot in the spring, but showed glowing form in the Tour de Suisse with even a 3rd place overall. Remarkably impressive. And with legs like that you will always get your 500K back out of him.”

Thomas: “Vacek is going to be good, I am convinced of that too. Beyond that, plenty of doubts about Mads Pedersen. He was thoroughly out-sprinted by Kooij in the Boucles de la Mayenne and his result at the Danish national championship does not show that the sprint legs are nicely tuned up either. Still, he will improve and, as one of the few, he is explicitly going hunting for green. I do not dare write him off yet, but I am very curious about further communication ahead of the Tour. Unlike the 2025 Giro and 2025 Vuelta, he is not a must-have here and his pricing is steep, maybe even a bit too steep. 40% that he goes. NB: I have good vibes about Ayuso, if he keeps it all together and the team can keep him out of the wind, he could just be a dangerous outsider for the podium.”

Lotto - Intermarche

Arnaud De Lie and Lennert van Eetvelt chasing a stage win.

Tom: “Lennert van Eetvelt. Lots of talent, but it is not coming out enough yet. He showed nice things in the Giro, but then crashed out with a broken middle finger. If you can fish him out very cheaply, the gamble is worth it you would say. He is also in the mix for the young rider jersey.”

Thomas: “The spring is over so we can look at Arnaud De Lie again. He won a stage in the Tour de Wallonie very convincingly, but was then ruthlessly dropped in Franco-Belge. Lots of uncertainty, but in the Tours of recent years actually a safe bet for a number of placings. Because of his dubious past, De Lie is a not-too-eagerly-chosen guest and therefore exactly the kind of differential for your pool. There will be few riders in his price bracket with a higher ceiling, so I am keeping an eye on the little bull.”

Movistar Team

Cian Uijtdebroeks for GC, Pablo Castrillo for the breakaway.

Tom: “Cian Uijtdebroeks in a Movistar kit. Still getting used to it. And yet he seems to feel at ease in the less rigid Spanish environment, because at Visma LAB he never came good. The still only 23-year-old Belgian finished 8th in Catalonia, 12th in the Basque Country and 7th in the Auvergne. A top 10 in the Tour should be possible.”

Thomas: “At the moment the Movistar men are still without a sprinter (do keep an eye on what Adria's plans are in the sprints), which hopefully means we will once again see an attacking Spanish team at the start. For the slightly hillier stages I then look to Pablo Castrillo (who also has a good ITT) and for the real mountain stages I look to Einer Rubio. Fine choices, but certainly not must-haves in their category.”

Netcompany INEOS

Kevin Vauquelin, Carlos Rodriguez and Thymen Arensman, with roles between GC and stages depending on form.

Tom: “It really is Dorian Godon's year. The puncher made the move from a French team to INEOS and that suits him well. He is very fast once the peloton has been thinned out and that is a nice weapon. His tally already stands at 5 this year. Still, I do not want to set expectations too high, because in this field it will be very tough to take a stage.”

Thomas: “With a DNS for Onley and a struggling Vauquelin, INEOS is rather in the firing line at the moment. At the same time that creates room for others, and then in the mountains for Arensman and Carlos Rodriguez in particular. The story of the former is well known, the story of Rodriguez perhaps a little less so. After tidy showings in the Tours of 2023 and (to a lesser extent) 2024, various crashes and injuries led to a mediocre 2025. In 2026 C-Rod has picked up the thread a bit more, but in terms of results it is not all that encouraging yet. His last stage in TARA was good and also shows that Rodriguez certainly does not shy away from the attack. Personally I really enjoyed watching him in the past and I so badly want him to have a happy Tour again at last. Given his very low pricing, that makes him a really nice filler pick behind your GC men.”

NSN Cycling Team

Led by Biniam Girmay, who is chasing his first Tour stage win since 2024.

Tom: “I am venturing onto dangerous ground here, I know. Because you are the chairman of the Bini fan club, but I am going to mow the grass from under your feet anyway. And I will even bring in your very own Law of Zwet. The year 2022 (Giro) was great, 2023 meh (Tour), 2024 great (Tour, green), 2025 meh and then 2026... great, of course. And the signs are there too. Keep an eye on Bini, because he has green dreams again!”

Thomas: “A neat line of reasoning, it could honestly have been mine! Girmay often has something extra in the Tour and is a really lovely rider to click into your team. Beyond that I see no extra riders to select from this team. Lewis Askey (witness nice results in the Tour of Belgium and the British championship) is ready for the Tour, but he will really have to focus primarily on delivering success for Girmay. This applies to many men in the team, and the remaining attackers in the squad are not distinctive enough for me compared with other options. But, never say never!”

Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team

Wildcard around Tom Pidcock, ambitious GC bid combined with stage chances.

Tom: “The Pidcock lad is getting more and more consistent and I can only applaud that. He saw his spring collapse with a crash in Catalonia, but before that he showed impressive things. Most remarkable was being the only one able to follow an unleashed Pogacar on the Cipressa and Poggio in Sanremo. He says he is going to the Tour without expectations, but make no mistake. He will be there. With 3rd overall in the Vuelta he showed he can even podium in a Grand Tour.”

Thomas: “A good friend of WielerOrakel and perhaps a gem for your Tour team: Fred Wright. He probably falls into the cheapest price class at the cycling games and has shown that his form is good. He rode a solid time trial in Switzerland and won the British road race championship. Wright gets over a hill and has a decent sprint within a thinned-out group. I am still waiting to see whether a pure sprinter is taken along at Pinarello and how Wright sees his role in the flat stages, because that could still be relevant in my considerations. Still, you cannot go far wrong with him and he holds good cards for selection.”

Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe

Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz aim for a duel with Pogacar, Vingegaard and Seixas.

Tom: “Remco Evenepoel is rather snowed under, because it is mostly about Pogacar, Vingegaard and Seixas. But do not underestimate the little man from Schepdaal. He is preparing (especially by his standards) in complete calm for the Tour and, if you listen to the noises from his camp, he is sharp. He could easily be the man in yellow after stage 1 and then hold onto it for a bit too. Still, he will eventually sink through it, because uphill it is not good enough. And then in the second part of the Tour you also have a good chance of a frustrated Evenepoel, because he gets ridden off the wheel by the big men and even by his steady teammate Lipowitz. But by then he will probably have already raked in your points.”

Thomas: “My pick at Red Bull would also be Evenepoel. With Lipowitz it has truly gone every which way for me. At the moment he looks set to be the odd one out and not make the selection. The reason: choices have to be made at the top, Lipowitz's ceiling is just a touch too low and he is actually just a bit too solid. Unlike last year, he is no longer in the running for the white jersey and is not a collector of mountain points either. On top of that, the field behind Pogacar and Vingegaard is a good deal stronger than last year, so a repeat of third place is no certainty either. He did ride strongly in terms of placings in the smaller stage races this year, but again has not really been able to resist the very best in top form.”

Soudal Quick-Step

Tim Merlier as sprint priority, freedom for climbers like Ilan Van Wilder and Valentin Paret-Peintre.

Tom: “Lovely team with plenty of chances for a day win. Then I pick out Valentin Paret-Peintre. The really rake-thin little climber regularly picks up his stage wins in Grand Tours, because alongside good climbing legs and an adventurous mindset he also has a venomous little sprint. On top of that a possible contender for the polka dots.”

Thomas: “Paret-Peintre's counterpart goes by the name of Ilan Van Wilder. The question is when it will finally truly come out for the young Belgian. After his third place at the World time trial championship last year, I really hoped he would spread his wings further this year. That has not quite worked yet, although his 5th place in the Tour de Suisse offered some hope again. An attack-minded Van Wilder I would consider once more, but (as said) there are plenty of nicer riders in that group.”

Team Jayco AlUla

Stage team with Michael Matthews, Luke Plapp, Ben O'Connor, Pascal Ackermann and Mauro Schmid.

Tom: “Michael Matthews broke both wrists this spring and that undoubtedly hurt him, but me too, because he was in my classics team. The advantage of those kinds of injuries is that he is nicely priced and, at 35, Matthews still delivers. And his form is growing, just look at his performances in the team time trial in the Auvergne and the individual time trial in Switzerland. He will let the flat sprints go, but with punching and attacking he will earn his euros.”

Thomas: “There are better options to be found than Ackermann, and that actually applies a bit to Plapp, O'Connor and Schmid too. Especially because they want to attack with the whole team, it is always a bit of a lottery to take the right one. And there are few things as frustrating as that. On gut feeling I would place Plapp, on the basis of raw talent, the course and his time trial potential, slightly above the other two. When Plapp sets his mind on something, he is often capable of something special.”

Team Picnic PostNL

Hoping for Pavel Bittner to recover, otherwise stage wins from the breakaway with Frank van den Broek and Warren Barguil among others.

Tom: “Well, Picnic. Already looking forward to your roast, Thomas. Pavel Bittner then. A fine sprinter, but struggling in the run-up to the Tour with an ankle injury. If he is fit you can happily take him as a sprint filler.”

Thomas: “No roast, I simply spend few to no words on it. Bittner a nice option, otherwise stay well away. Just look at the result of the national championship.”

Team TotalEnergies

French wildcard, stage-focused selection with Jordan Jegat, sprinter Emilien Jeanniere and Anthony Turgis.

Tom: “Speaking of fine filler sprinters: Emilien Jeanniere is one of those too. Sprinting between 5th and 10th is what we want to see from him and that is exactly what he did in the sprint melee of the Tour of Belgium.”

Thomas: “Sad but true, with a field like this year's you do not need to look any further at TotalEnergies than the possible selection of Jeanniere. Jordan Jegat surprised last year in a (much) weaker field with a top 10 and you could (if you really want to) consider him as an attacker, but then it really does stop there.”

Tudor Pro Cycling Team

Wildcard with Julian Alaphilippe, Michael Storer and Matteo Trentin, targeting a stage win.

Tom: “Michael Storer rode a very creditable Giro with a 7th place and is going for stage wins in the Tour. A solid choice if you are still looking for a good climbing attacker.”

Thomas: “At Tudor I am very curious what they will do in the sprints. Pluimers and Trentin are on the list now, both showed decent form at the national championships, but they are not pure sprinters. If they bring along a more pure sprinter, that one would be well worth considering. If they do not, I would find Pluimers or Trentin interesting if they also state they will join in on the flat sprints. Tudor is of course also fighting for the points, and then you really cannot afford to bring no sprinter. This is an interesting development to wait and see, Alaphilippe for me is in any case passe. Update: Arvid de Kleijn then, very interesting.”

UAE Team Emirates - XRG

Defending team around top favourite Tadej Pogacar, with (luxury) domestiques like Isaac del Toro, Adam Yates, Tim Wellens and Florian Vermeersch.

Tom: “Isaac del Toro. As I wrote in my prediction for the white jersey, I really believe in a good GC for him, in the shadow of leader Pogacar of course. Del Toro will have to fight it out with Seixas. In a game with team points you simply cannot ignore him.”

Thomas: “A fair point about Del Toro, you really cannot get around him (despite his price tag). For games where team points play an important role, it certainly does no harm not to economise on Pogacar's teammates. If I then run through the UAE line-up and also look at the values of the various riders, then I find Brandon McNulty the most interesting option. He rode well in Switzerland, can do enormous damage in the mountains on a good day and can possibly also score individual points in the time trial.”

Uno-X Mobility

Tobias Halland Johannessen for GC, stage chances for Magnus Cort, Soren Waerenskjold and Jonas Abrahamsen.

Tom: “Waerenskjold is slowly but surely becoming a genuinely reliable sprinter. In the footsteps of Hushovd and Kristoff. He lets sprints go less and less often and has a good train at his disposal. An added bonus is that he is one of the best climbing fast men, so do not worry if there are a few hills in the parcours.”

Thomas: “I am inclined to leave Tobias Halland Johannessen out for once. He is a talented rider, but no longer fights for the young rider jersey and in this field I see him finishing 10th rather than 5th. That, combined with his often steep pricing, makes him less interesting to me. Beyond that, with Cort and Abrahamsen, Uno-X has some lovely breakaway riders who can score points in a great many stages. They do make it into my tombola of filler spots.”

XDS Astana Team

Aiming for stage wins and the mountains jersey, with Sergio Higuita and Lorenzo Fortunato among others.

Tom: “Max Kanter. Where with Waerenskjold, Jeanniere and Bittner you have sprinters for the second tier (6-10), I dare to place Kanter a little above that. The 28-year-old German regularly sprints near the podium and he does so pretty consistently this season. Click him in then.”

Thomas: “Kanter is the most logical choice within Astana, I am right on board with that. Looking at the rest of the selection, my eye is most on Harold Tejada. The Colombian started the year very strongly with top 10 placings in the UAE Tour and Paris-Nice and has proven that (also for the UCI points) he always likes to sprint along for the placings. A lovely little rider and undoubtedly very reasonably priced, for which we will briefly forget the slightly poorer performance in TARA and keep the faith. A potential gem.”

Team Visma | Lease a Bike

Jonas Vingegaard as leader in his bid for the Giro-Tour double, with luxury domestiques like Matteo Jorgenson and Sepp Kuss.

Tom: “Jonas Vingegaard. A bit of an obvious one perhaps, but there are plenty of players who, because of the likes of Seixas and Del Toro, doubt whether to bring Vingegaard. I think he will clearly be the number 2 and can race somewhat freely. He has the perfect Giro in the bag and, for the first time in years, a smooth preparation towards the Tour. Moreover, Pogacar really is the top favourite. But do not underestimate Vingegaard, he will definitely be there.”

Thomas: “A bit of an obvious one, you can say that again. I think I will leave the other Visma men alone, I simply do not expect too many team points. If I then look at the combination of riders who can score points themselves and are also reasonably priced, then I end up with Sepp Kuss. The experienced American has repeatedly shown that he can ride top 10 in the harder mountain stages and that he can ‘easily’ finish in the top 20 of the GC. This actually all applies to Jorgenson too, but on the basis of the price tag I find Kuss a bit more interesting. Piganzoli also rode very strongly in the Route d'Occitanie after his lovely Giro. He may surprise me, but I see it more as a learning experience for him and do not expect him to ride as well as in the Giro.”

Frequently asked questions about your 2026 Tour pool

Who is the top favourite for the 2026 Tour de France?

Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) starts as the top favourite and defending champion. His main challengers for yellow are Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) and the emerging Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team).

Which riders should I pick for my Tour pool?

A strong pool is a good mix of GC riders, sprinters and attackers. Read the golden tip from Tom and Thomas for each team above and, above all, listen to the podcasts.

When does the 2026 Tour de France start and how long does it last?

The 2026 Tour de France runs from 4 to 26 July 2026, over 21 stages. The start is in Barcelona with a team time trial.

Where is the best place to play my cycling pool?

We recommend the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game, where you compete with the whole community. Other popular options are Scorito and Sporza Wielermanager. Want to play for free with friends or colleagues? Then create your own Tour pool. The tips in this blog work on every platform.

Where can I find more tips and analysis?

CyclingOracle shares deeper analysis, rider cards and daily tips in the WhatsApp Community via Petje Af, on this site and in the CyclingOracle Podcast (in Dutch)

Finally

Have you made it all the way to the end? Congratulations, and good luck making the right choices. Above all, make your own choices. Are you playing the CyclingOracle Fantasy Game? Then you compete throughout the whole Tour with the community. Want more tips, or to look forward to the next race together with other cycling fans? Join the WielerOrakel community via Petje Af.